NPR : Bugs Bunny: The Trickster, American Style

NPR : Bugs Bunny: The Trickster, American Style

Bugs Bunny derived pleasure from driving people crazy. And that, Sutherland concludes, may be why he lasts. He doesn’t seem like a character of the ’40s, but rather a character of today. His wisecracking, gender-bending, anti-authority antics broke ground long before punk rock, or David Bowie, or Jerry Seinfeld. He’s impossible to pin down in any specific sense.

Sutherland believes the only way to truly describe Bugs Bunny is to simply show one of the cartoons, point at the rascally rabbit and say, “Him, in toto, not in parts. From high opera to bullfights, Shakespeare to Brooklyn, from man to woman … he is all of those, and none.”

Bugs is the best!

Click on the link to read the hold article and hear the podcast – complete with audio. There is also a link to a bit of video called “Long Haired Hare” (1949) when Bugs impersonates Leopold Stokowski.

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Tags: humor, funny, Bugs Bunny, cartoon, culture, NPR, podcast

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Christmas greetings!

Like Charlie Brown, Christmas depresses me on the whole. Perhaps because the build-up is so long and disappointment is practically guaranteed by the time the day arrives. I agree with Loudon Wainwright III on this one:

Outside it’s positively balmy
In the air nary a nip.
Suddenly it’s Christmas
Unbuttoned and unzipped.
Yes, they’re working overtime
Santa’s little runts.
Christmas comes but once a year
And goes on for two months.

I’m not complete humbug about it all. I love buying, wrapping and giving gifts. I love getting them all the more. However, it’s just the length of the holiday that gets me down and know that a long winter is about the begin. Too bad Christmas doesn’t come in the middle of winter – something to look forward to during the long, cold, dark days.

I’m not a Christian but I do appreciate the wonderment of the occasion.

Merry Christmas. “God bless us every one.”

Tags: life, christmas, commercialism, holiday, Loudon Wainwright III, pop culture, Charlie Brown, depression, cartoon

 

Sleep late? yeah. right.

Ask any cat owner if this isn’t familiar. Got the link from YouTube via the Cute Overload website.

Tags: cats, humor, life, YouTube, funny

 

How Americans view the Scots?

Offensive, angry and ginger – Simpsons’ Willie defines US image of the Scot – Times Online

Despite all the money, the glossy adverts and the brand marketing, Scotland’s international image is personified by the execrable Groundskeeper Willie from The Simpsons cartoon series.

Groundskeeper Willie, should you be unfamilar with him, is possibly the most offensive, angry, feral, fictional Scotsman ever invented. Think of the worst possible stereotype of the Scot; double it, and you have got Willie — a red-haired, bearded, foul-tempered, incompetent, haggis-eating, testosterone-filled boor who spends his private time secretly videotaping couples in their cars.

Lighten up. It’s a cartoon, for cryin’ out loud!

I think most American’s look to Sean Connery or Star Trek‘s Scotty for their Scottish image. Personally, I favor Craig Ferguson who hosts The Late Late Show.

Click the link for the full article

technorati tags:Scots, image, Simpsons, Americans

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"The Simpsons won. Good night, John Boy.”

The Guys Who Go With the ‘D’oh!’ – washingtonpost.com

Here is a fun article from today’s Washington Post talking about the Simpsons.

On the campaign trail in 1992, George H.W. Bush promised voters that if he were reelected president, “we’re going to strengthen the American family to make it more like the Waltons and less like the Simpsons.”

The Simpsons won. Good night, John Boy.

“When Bush said he wanted us to be the Waltons, we thought, what? He wants us to be poor and sleep in the same bed?” This is Al Jean, one of the founding writers for “The Simpsons,” which has been a pop culture trademark for 18 years and 400 episodes on the Fox network.

“We also wondered, why the Waltons? Weren’t they, you know, set in the Depression?” This is David Silverman, one of the original animators for the show and now director of “The Simpsons Movie,” opening nationwide on Friday.

It’s a fun article with info about the early Simpson development on the Tracy Ullman show and some teaser info on the movie. Give it a read.

technorati tags:Simpsons, funny, silly, television, pop-culture, comedy, family, Washington-Post

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Hooray for Springfield Vermont – Home of the Simpsons!

A ‘Simpsons’ frenzy in Springfield, Vt. – USATODAY.com

It couldn’t have happened to a nicer town.

http://www.simpsonsmovie.com/main.html

Sumigirl in Simpsons form

technorati tags:Simpsons, Vermont, Movie, silly, cartoon

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